In recreational vehicles, such as boats and other watercraft, chairs or seats are often utilized in order to enable individuals to sit comfortably in or on the vehicle while the vehicle is in operation. To enhance the ability of the seat to provide a comfortable and stable seating surface for an individual onboard the vehicle, numerous vehicle seats have also been supplied with foam pads which are contacted by an individual resting on the seat to both provide a soft surface on which the individual may rest and, to a certain extent, maintain the individual in place on the seat.
While many vehicle seats have been previously designed with integral backrests in order to provide a seat and backrest for an individual, the seats having integral non-folding backrests presented certain problems. More specifically, the integral non-folding backrest interfered with the ability of individuals to move about the vehicle when performing certain activities on the vehicle, such as fishing, as well as complicating the storage of the vehicle due to the height of the backrests. In addition the non-folding backrest of the seat, depending on the seat location in a boat, often impaired the visibility of the boat operator while driving.
To overcome this deficiency, more recently seats have been developed in which the backrest is pivotally secured to a base of the seat such that when the seat is not occupied, the backrest can be folded downwardly over the seat base into a more compact configuration that helps to prevent the seat from obstructing the movement of people on the vehicle, makes it easier to store the vehicle as well as improve driving visibility. Additionally, folding backrests aid in shielding the seat portion from exposure to rain and allow for the easy installation and removal of storage covers.
Recreational vehicle seats have been developed with folding backrests that use a pair of formed metal hinges to attach the backrest to the seat in a manner that permits the backrest to pivot relative to the seat portion. Each hinge consists of a first leaf equipped with spaced apart hinge knuckles, a second leaf equipped with spaced apart hinge knuckles, and a pin that extends through the knuckles of both leaves creating a pivoting joint therealong. One side of the seat is fastened to one of the leaves of each hinge and a corresponding side of the backrest is fastened to the other one of the leaves of each hinge, typically with threaded fasteners. While simple in construction, this design is costly because it is generally time consuming to make and assemble. In addition, the metal hinges are typically exposed, which presents a significant pinch point that could injure a person when the seat is rotated in either direction.
An example of a second type of seat equipped with a folding backrest is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,992,936. This folding backrest design consists of a molded seat base and backrest that are pivotally joined at a pivot point by a hinge pin. An upholstered removable seat base panel is attached to the seat base with threaded fasteners. Likewise, the backrest is formed by securing an upholstered removable seat back panel to the seat back with threaded fasteners. While this design has reduced the likelihood of injury occurring while rotating the backrest, it has not significantly improved upon the time required to assemble the components, as a total of eight threaded fasteners are needed to attach the upholstered seat backrest and seat base cushions. Moreover, as with its predecessor, the hinges are also located outboard of the seat and backrest thereby exposing each hinge and resulting in a less aesthetically appealing seat.
A third type of folding backrest seat design uses spaced apart hinge knuckles that are integrally formed in a seat base and backrest molding. In assembly, the knuckles of the seat base are positioned such that each knuckle is received between a pair of the knuckles of the backrest. The knuckles each have one or more transversely extending openings that accept a pivot rod that is received therein, thereby enabling the backrest to pivot relative to the seat base. An example of this type of folding backrest seat design is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,644,751.
However, in order to prevent the rod from inadvertently disengaging from the knuckles, the base and backrest are formed such that the rod is completely enclosed within the assembled seat. This construction greatly increases the difficulty of assembling the seat because the components cannot simply be assembled in a manner that easily allows for the rod to be subsequently inserted. Further, after the seat is assembled, and the foam cushion or cushions are attached to various parts of the seat, should any portion of the seat become damaged during use, it is not possible to simply remove that portion of the seat or otherwise disassemble the seat without also damaging the cushions and other portions of the seat. Therefore, with seats of this type, once the seat becomes damaged, it is required that the entire seat must be replaced rather than only the damaged part.
As a result, it is desirable to develop a folding seat having a modular construction such that, when the seat is damaged, the damaged part of the seat can be disassembled, removed and replaced without having to also remove and/or replace the undamaged parts of the seat. Further, the seat components should also be able to be easily assembled as a result of the construction of the connections between the respective parts of the seat, including the hinge mechanism, to speed up the manufacturing process for the seat.